Commodore 64: best 2 players simultaneous game?

[highinfidelity]

Hello mates. My cousin's boyfriend just rediscovered its old Commodore 64 and presented it to me. I have been an early user of the simplier VIC 20 and recall that the C64 was reputed an all-times best bet for playing games, wasn't it?

 

We plugged the thing and amazingly enough everything still works as a swiss watch after 20 years of dismission, even the floppy drive. There is a small anonymus cartridge still plugged in the port, which he recalls was called the "turbo" and was supposed to enhance performance (he is the first person I met who REALLY used a Commodore home computer as a business machine). Anyone knows what it is and how it works?

 

Back to subject, among all accountability and standard letters stuff, there is a bunch of floppies with a lot of games on them. However, seen my experience with the VIC 20, I tend to presume that games available on cartridge were the best (and of course much more convenient than that stupid datassette and its awful "?load error"). Was it the same for the C64, or did best games come on floppies instead?

 

We are now looking for two-players simultaneous action games. (Please note that I've already seen the thread about best 10 C64 games, and that I'm little interested in two players alternate games). Anyone recall some great title, some true classic of amusement?

Edited January 24, 2006 by highinfidelity

[Mayhem]

IK+ (Chop 'n Drop Karate in the US)

Bubble Bobble

Bounces

Archon

Wizball

Ikari Warriors (UK version)

[Thomas Jentzsch]

Pitstop II

International Soccer

Spy vs. Spy

Survivor (cooperative mode)

[highinfidelity]

Thank you so far, sirs. I seem to have Pitstop II on floppy. How were things made back then: is it the same of the cartridge, or were there several imitations for each game?

 

Uh, and the PADDLES! I reacall there were paddles for Commodore, though I've never owned a pair. Do the Atari paddles fit perhaps? I remember that Atari joysticks plug into the port but the wiring is different, isn't it? Is it the same with paddles? Simultaneous games that use paddles, by the way?

[MacbthPSW]

There is a small anonymus cartridge still plugged in the port, which he recalls was called the "turbo" and was supposed to enhance performance (he is the first person I met who REALLY used a Commodore home computer as a business machine). Anyone knows what it is and how it works?

There were many cartridges produced that, among other things, made disk loading faster, by replacing/patching the existing load routines with faster ones, at the possible expense of compatibility.

 

However, seen my experience with the VIC 20, I tend to presume that games available on cartridge were the best (and of course much more convenient than that stupid datassette and its awful "?load error"). Was it the same for the C64, or did best games come on floppies instead?

Most cartridges were only produced early in the C64's life, mostly before the programmer's skills and consumer's expectations increased greatly. Many of these games were only 8 or 16k carts. There was a brief resurgence in cartridge sales in the early 90s with a newer, bigger bankswitching format, but in the overall scheme of things, games on cart were very insignificant on the C-64, with the disk and even tape format overshadowing cart games.

 

We are now looking for two-players simultaneous action games. (Please note that I've already seen the thread about best 10 C64 games, and that I'm little interested in two players alternate games). Anyone recall some great title, some true classic of amusement?

Bruce Lee

Mario Bros.

Several of the Summer and Winter Games series have good simultaneous two player events.

 

Uh, and the PADDLES! I reacall there were paddles for Commodore, though I've never owned a pair. Do the Atari paddles fit perhaps? I remember that Atari joysticks plug into the port but the wiring is different, isn't it? Is it the same with paddles?

The C64 (and VIC-20) use exactly the same joysticks as the Atari. Also, the Atari paddles will work fine on the C64.

[highinfidelity]

Thanks for the insight. Thus, tracking cartridges has little or no meaning I suppose. It's weird, as I'm so accustomed to think that cartridge games rock that I just can't seem to appreciate anything coming out from a floppy

 

The "turbo" thing is an anonimous black cart. Will try to take a picture and post it for further information, I'm pretty curious about it.

 

The joystick news are quite unexpected. I recently tried my VIC20 joystick on the Atari and it didn't work (but worked perfectly yesterday evening on the C64). Dirty contacts, perhaps, who knows.

[AtariAger]

I remember a motorcycle 1/2 player game? You had jumps ie:cars, ramps etc.

 

Can't remember the name but player one on top and player 2 on bottom...very fun & very addicting!!!

 

[MacbthPSW]

I remember a motorcycle 1/2 player game?  You had jumps ie:cars, ramps etc.

 

Can't remember the name but player one on top and player 2 on bottom...very fun & very addicting!!!

Probably Kickstart? Definitely a classic.

[AtariAger]

Probably Kickstart?  Definitely a classic.

1006064[/snapback]

 

 

YES!!!!!...That's it Dude...good call!!!

 

 

[pkblack]

I remember there was a beachhead game for the commodore that had a grand finale where both players fought to the death. I thiink that was the name of it.

[MacbthPSW]

I remember there was a beachhead game for the commodore that had a grand finale where both players fought to the death. I thiink that was the name of it.

Yes, Beach-Head II - The Dictator Strikes Back! is the one. The 4th screenshot is the one you're thinking of, probably. Another cool, very 80s game.

[Cobra Kai]

Racing Destruction Set

 

Build your own tracks, adjust the gravity, pick different vehicles to use...this game is astounding. It's similar to Rock n Roll Racing, only not as pretty, but the amount of options and gameplay more than makes up for graphical shortfalls.